Event 77

MERCHANTS OF TRUTH: JILL ABRAMSON

Convulsive changes in journalism following the advent of the Internet have exposed the editorial/business divide, and spawned ethical dilemmas. Navigating these choppy seas is the first female executive editor of The New York Times, Jill Abramson, who was fired in 2014 after less than three years in the job. In her new book Merchants of Truth: The Businessof News and the Fight for Facts she investigates reporting at four news organisations. Two have towering reputations (The New York Times and The Washington Post); two are relatively new entrants (BuzzFeed and Vice) of whom Abramson said they, along with other digital media, “were giving the old guard serious competition – and heartburn”. Following publication of Merchants of Truth Abramson herself now stands accused of factual errors and unethical behaviour, namely plagiarism – a charge which she refutes. She joins Toby Manhire to discuss the controversy, the Fourth Estate, and whether cat videos are all we can expect.